Personal space is the room around us that we need to feel comfortable

Most people like to have a little distance between their body and people near them. Different people have different amounts of personal space that they need. It is also different depending on who it is. Closer for our family than for our friends.

When someone gets too close it can make some people feel anxious or annoyed.

When standing in front of someone most people like you to stand an arm's length away. People are usually more OK with other people being close to the side of their body.

Personal space is important for most people. We can all be considerate by not standing too close to someone.

Use the above example to help you create your own social story matched to your child's needs. You may want to modify some of the language for very young children but try to avoid losing precise meaning when using more accessible language. Creating social stories with photos or picture can often help too. This example is available in a printable format below.